Lost/stolen bag with car keys in, can I claim?

111222

Bit tricky this. I left my bag on a seat for 30mins and went back to find it gone. It had my car keys in. Now my insurance company says I'm covered for stolen keys. So can do I prove this?

tempus_fugit

Have you reported the theft to the police? Have you declared all items that were in the bag to the police, including the car keys? If so, get a copy of the police report to send to the insurance company. If not, then you may have a tough time making a claim for them.

111222

I haven't reported yet, I was away from home for a few days and I assumed I would have to wait till Monday to report. Is there some time period that would matter in other words if I reported two days later would this make a difference?

Your right though the insurance company do want a police report, but would you say I lost the bag or was it stolen, after all it was my fault for leaving it?

Aretnap

If you know where you left it, and it wasn't there when you can't back then presuming nobody hands it in, then it will be stolen, not lost. It would be covered as a theft claim, unless there is an exclusion for thefts where you left the keys unattended in public or something similar.

OTOH if you:d left it, erm, I think it was on the seat but not really sure, it might have been somewhere else, that would be lost rather than stolen

Dangermac

Aretnap wrote: »

If you know where you left it, and it wasn't there when you can't back then presuming nobody hands it in, then it will be stolen, not lost. It would be covered as a theft claim, unless there is an exclusion for thefts where you left the keys unattended in public or something similar.

OTOH if you:d left it, erm, I think it was on the seat but not really sure, it might have been somewhere else, that would be lost rather than stolen

Probably best that the OP sticks to facts, as to avoid future insurance issues.

DM

Dangermac

111222 wrote: »

I haven't reported yet, I was away from home for a few days and I assumed I would have to wait till Monday to report. Is there some time period that would matter in other words if I reported two days later would this make a difference?

Your right though the insurance company do want a police report, but would you say I lost the bag or was it stolen, after all it was my fault for leaving it?

The bag has (almost certainly) been stolen, notwithstanding the circumstances. You will need to obtain a police crime reference number as the insurer will request this from you. Unlikely insurers will request a full police report.

DM

Dangermac

111222 wrote: »

Bit tricky this. I left my bag on a seat for 30mins and went back to find it gone. It had my car keys in. Now my insurance company says I'm covered for stolen keys. So can do I prove this?

Before you push this matter too far, you should be certain that it's worthwhile claiming (i.e policy excess, no claims discount, increased premium etc)

DM

FlameCloud

Its probably worthwhile to mention that a contents/pp policy will probably exclude car keys from cover.

Aretnap

Dangermac wrote: »

Probably best that the OP sticks to facts, as to avoid future insurance issues.

DM

I wasn't suggesting anything otherwise - it seems clear from his post that he knows where he left it. Obviously if he isn't sure where he left it he should not suggest that he is. I merely raised the 'not sure where I left it' scenario to illustrate the difference between loss and theft.